Digital Age Research Articles

Agenda Setting Theory in The Age of Digital Media: An Analytical Perspective

This paper explores agenda-setting theory within digital media. It aims to evaluate changes in these paradigms due to digital platforms and their impact on mass communication theories. The discussion includes a historical overview of agenda-setting theory, grounded in foundational works and expanded by contemporary insights on user agency and information dissemination in the digital age. Using qualitative methods, the study incorporates thematic analysis, content analysis, and interviews with media professionals and users to collect comprehensive data. Key findings indicate that the traditional linear flow of information from media to the public has shifted to a multidirectional exchange influenced by user-generated content and social media dynamics. The study emphasizes the need for scholars to adapt traditional media theories to the participatory nature of modern platforms. This research enhances understanding of current media ecosystems and lays the groundwork for future studies on media influence in complex digital environments.

The Right to a Public Hearing in Criminal Cases in the Digital Age

Summary The author analyses the right to a public hearing in criminal cases in the light of the development of communication technology, the media, and the digitalization of courts. After a presentation of the current Strasburg standards he shows the competing values and the need for balance. He presents the possible solutions of preserving the right in relation to traditional hearings, hybrid hearings, virtual hearings, and online courts. It is argued that the development of different forms of remote hearings changes the perception and implementation of the right to a public hearing and that developments in technology call for limitations on the public character of hearings, rather than for increasing publicity. It was also observed that the Strasburg jurisprudence not only identifies the negative obligations of parties concerning the right, but also requires them to take some positive actions.

Moralization of law, heavy-penaltyism, and retributive justice: A corpus-assisted study of legal consciousness on Chinese social media

Previous studies on legal consciousness have primarily focused on individual-level interactions with legal institutions or personnel. However, this perspective may overlook the indirect experiences that citizens gain through social media and the social normative consensus behind individual experiences. To address this gap, this study examined the shared legal consciousness expressed by citizens on a social media platform. Using corpus-assisted discourse analysis and sentiment analysis, we analyzed 284,792 danmu comments from the most popular legal channel on Bilibili in China. Our findings provide a contemporary perspective on legal consciousness in Chinese social media, uncovering three prevailing ideologies: moralization of law, heavy-penaltyism, and a predilection for retributive justice over restorative justice. Through our mixed-methods approach using big data, we demonstrate the potential for expanding research on legal consciousness. Our findings enable a deeper understanding of how legal consciousness is expressed and shared among citizens in the digital age.

Enhancing Lessons on the Internet of Things in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Medical Education with a Remote Lab

Integrating remote Internet of Things (IoT) laboratories into project-based learning (PBL) in higher education institutions (HEIs) while exploiting the approach of technology-enhanced learning (TEL) is a challenging yet pivotal endeavor. Our proposed approach enables students to interact with an IoT-equipped lab locally and remotely, thereby bridging theoretical knowledge with practical application, creating a more immersive, adaptable, and effective learning experience. This study underscores the significance of combining hardware, software, and coding skills in PBL, emphasizing how IoTRemoteLab (the remote lab we developed) supports a customized educational experience that promotes innovation and safety. Moreover, we explore the potential of IoTRemoteLab as a TEL, facilitating and supporting the understanding and definition of the requirements of remote learning. Furthermore, we demonstrate how we incorporate generative artificial intelligence into IoTRemoteLab’s settings, enabling personalized recommendations for students leveraging the lab locally or remotely. Our approach serves as a model for educators and researchers aiming to equip students with essential skills for the digital age while addressing broader issues related to access, engagement, and sustainability in HEIs. The practical findings following an in-class experiment reinforce the value of IoTRemoteLab and its features in preparing students for future technological demands and fostering a more inclusive, safe, and effective educational environment.

An Analytical Study of Acquiring English Communication Skills for Employability being Affected by Societal Factors and Own Personality Traits of Learners of Technical Graduates in India

English Communication Skills have proved to be an integral skill in employment skills. Students graduating in a wide range of disciplines face a number of difficulties in learning the English language especially when they focus on their areas of specializations. It has become a major issue. With reference to the page no 29 of India Skills Report 2023, the employment ratio of Bachelor of Engineering/Bachelor of Technology and Master of Business Administration was 57.44% and 60.1% respectively and the same was 55.15% and 55.09% in the respective fields in 2022 when Communication Skills were kept at the top (page no 9, India Skills Report 2022) in the list of key skills of Digital Age. English proved to be a game changer in terms of enhancing employability scope (Page 20, 21, 45, 47, 53, 54, 55; India Skills Report 2022) and a number of cities and states performed better with more focus on developing English Communication skills of university students. This study is primarily based on looking into social and affective factors affecting English language acquisition skills. It is absolutely relevant to the course developer, policy makers as well as academicians to understand what factors affect the language acquisition capacities of learners and necessary modifications can be initiated accordingly. This is an analytical study and it ascertains the significance of language affective factors from a rapid evidence assessment report submitted by EEF at University of oxford, Department of Education in July 2020 and a similar research project was conducted by Takayo Nitta at the University of Western Cape in South Africa on non-natives learning English and facing similar challenges in social, affective and cognitive areas. This is a qualitative study and secondary data is collected from the research project conducted at the University of Western Cape since learners were from a non-native country only where existing language learning culture is found to be utmost similar and problems are also identical.

Treating Anxiety-Based Cognitive Distortions Pertaining to Somatic Perception for Better Chronic Pain Outcomes: A Recommendation for Better Practice in the Present Day and the Cyber Age of Medicine.

Anxiety-based cognitive distortions pertaining to somatic perception (ABCD-SPs)-primarily catastrophizing, fear avoidance, and kinesiophobia-have been repeatedly linked to worsening chronic, non-cancer pain (CNCP) outcomes of increased disability, amplified pain, ineffective opioid use, and opioid misuse. Several studies have suggested that treating ABCD-SPs can improve pain outcomes, yet identification and targeting of ABCD-SPs are not part of the standard medical pain assessment and treatment plan. Utilizing a narrative review of proposed mechanisms, published patient perspectives, and study correlations connecting these cognitive distortions with CNCP outcomes, an approach for better practice in the delivery of standard medical CNCP care can be deduced and formulated into a Belief and Behavior Action Plan (BBAP) for medical clinicians treating CNCP to implement into initial and maintenance care planning. These recommendations require relatively few resources to implement and have the potential to disseminate more effective CNCP treatment on a large scale now and in the future with the new frontier of cognitive computing in medicine.

Integrated trajectory optimization for UAV-enabled wireless powered MEC system with joint energy consumption and AoI minimization

This paper studies an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-enabled wireless powered mobile edge computing (MEC) system, where a UAV, equipped with RF Chains and MEC servers, can sustainably provide wireless energy for charging Internet of Things (IoT) devices and executing computing tasks from these devices while hovering at designated hover points. Our goal is to minimize the weighted sum of energy consumption and Age of information (AoI) in this system, which depended on the UAV’s hovering time at designated points and its flying time. To achieve this, we jointly optimize the deployment of hover points and the visiting order of these points by the UAV. It is NP hard and mixed-integer non-convex which is difficult to solve by traditional methods. To tackle this problem, we present a trajectory optimization algorithm for joint energy consumption and AoI (TOJEA), which consists of two phases. In the first phase, an Equilibrium Optimizer (EO) algorithm with a variable individual size via its coding and updating strategies, in which each particle (individual) with its concentration (position) represents a target solution i.e. the whole deployment of hover points, is proposed to optimize the number and locations of hover points. Based on the deployment of hover points, a low-complexity greedy algorithm is adopted in the second stage to generate the optimal visiting order for the UAV. Experimental results demonstrate that TOJEA outperforms other algorithms on ten instances with up to 400 IoT devices.

Systematic Review of Traditional Plant Motifs for National Identity Based on Digital Technology Landscape Platform

The incorporation of Malaysian character into landscape design via traditional landscape characteristics reflecting the region's identity has been inhibited by designers' lack of initiative in incorporating natural resources. This article investigates the plant traits that create a symbiotic relationship between native plants, notably flowers, and the feeling of place they inspire. Furthermore, the study emphasizes (a) the importance of traditional plant motifs in shaping national identity and landscape awareness, (b) their use in landscape design to create a profound sense of place, and (c) the role of traditional plant motifs in promoting sustainable landscapes, biodiversity, and environmental conservation. A thorough assessment and analysis of current studies on traditional plant motifs and their contribution to landscape identity were done to attain this goal. Scopus, Econbiz, and Mendeley indexed the reviewed literature. This research gives insights into the evolution of plant motifs for identification, especially concerning the landscape and cultural heritage, by reviewing historical methods published from 2013 till 2023. The results highlight the necessity of using traditional plant themes in landscape design to develop a strong national identity and raise environmental awareness in the digital age.

Gen Z’s Oversharing on Instagram Stories

Oversharing was initially used to explain the condition where someone excessively discloses more private information about themselves to the general public, both online and offline. Oversharing on social media by adolescents is a significant problem in the digital age. However, Gen Z is closer to this phenomenon because their lives must be connected to the existence of social media as a platform to introduce themselves to the public. Therefore, Gen Z must manage the boundaries between private and public information. This qualitative study uses a descriptive approach, using Sandra Petronio's Communication Privacy Management Theory. The research informants were Gen Z, aged 18-24, who live in Sidoarjo and Surabaya. This study found that Gen Z's oversharing behavior in Instagram Stories can be associated with uploading repetitive or repetitive content. Oversharing activities on Instagram Stories also create conditions where Gen Z is more willing to share the luxury and wealth they possess. Oversharing can also be part of personal branding and labeling for Gen Z. Oversharing not only impacts the person sharing it, but this activity can also have consequences for the audience, such as embarrassment, disturbance, and disappointment. This research shows how Gen Z could overshare on Instagram Stories and how they manage their personal life according to CPM theory.

Investigating Effectiveness of Informing Users About Breach Status of Their Email Addresses During Website Registration

The ever-increasing number of data breaches targeting user credentials has become undeniable reality in our digital age. Although there are third-party breach notification services (e.g., Have I Been Pwned, Firefox Monitor) that allow users to check whether their credentials have been involved in data breaches, the number of users who are aware of or use such services may be limited. To better inform users about the breach status of their accounts, we designed a prototype registration system where the website uses readily available information (e.g., email address) to check whether this account was involved in a data breach, and then inform the user about the breach status of the email address while signing up for a website. We investigated the effectiveness of this system by performing an online study (n = 373) in which participants were asked to register to a mock-up website that presented them with a data breach notification based on Protection Motivation Theory (PMT). We found that 64% of participants were exposed in one or more breaches. A follow-up survey, 3 days after the initial survey, was conducted to determine if there were any behavior changes (e.g., changing passwords) of participants whose accounts were involved in some data breaches. We found that 40% of the participants changed their passwords on their some accounts. Finally, we present our qualitative data analysis to shed light on participants’ motivations behind their decisions as well as their perceptions of the integration of our prototype registration system.

Green business in the digital age: sustainable performance in an era of technological advancement and leadership transformation

Green business in the digital age: sustainable performance in an era of technological advancement and leadership transformation

Digital forgotten people?: decomposing digital divide in urban China

The digital divide among senior citizens is a significant challenge in the information era, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic when elderly individuals’ difficulties with technology negatively impacted their quality of life. This paper analyzes the digital divide by breaking it down into three aspects: ownership, competence, and learning. Using a novel and representative dataset from Shanghai, the study highlights a significant digital divide among the elderly, characterized by lower device ownership, limited digital competence, and restricted learning channels, despite many seniors showing interest in digital skills. This divide is exacerbated by internal disparities tied to age, education, and family support. It highlights the need for targeted policies to enhance digital inclusion for the aging population. Overall, this research contributes conceptual innovation to enhance our understanding of the digital divide and addresses the challenges faced by the ‘digitally forgotten’ in China. Given China’s blend of technological advancement and demographic shifts, the findings of this research have broader implications for global efforts to navigate the complexities of digital transformation in aging societies.

Unveiling Extremism: Leveraging Digital Data Mining Strategies

In the theoretical exploration of "Unveiling Extremism: Leveraging Digital Data Mining Strategies," the intricate web of extremist behavior is dissected through the lens of digital data mining. By utilizing advanced computational techniques, this study delves into the depths of online platforms, analyzing patterns, sentiments, and interactions to uncover the underlying mechanisms of extremism. The focus lies not only on identifying extremist content but also on understanding the processes that lead individuals towards radicalization. Through theoretical modeling and simulation, this research seeks to map out the pathways of radicalization, shedding light on the factors that contribute to the formation and spread of extremist ideologies. Moreover, the study examines the efficacy of various digital data mining strategies in detecting and countering extremism, proposing innovative approaches to enhance the effectiveness of online monitoring and intervention. Ultimately, this theoretical exploration serves as a foundation for developing proactive measures to combat extremism in the digital age, offering insights that can inform policy-making, intervention programs, and the design of online platforms.

Effectiveness of VR Technology in the Design of the Bali Megarupa V Virtual Exhibition

Virtual exhibitions offer a promising avenue for art appreciation in the digital age. However, limited research explores how these online spaces can foster emotional connections with art, a crucial aspect of the art experience. This study investigates the potential of immersive virtual reality (VR) to enhance engagement and emotional impact in virtual art exhibitions. Employing a multi-method approach combining literature review, user testing, and prototype development, the research identifies and evaluates design elements contributing to increased user engagement. This research employed a multi-method approach to understand how users engage with virtual art exhibitions. The study identified and evaluated the impact of specific design elements on user engagement by combining a literature review, user testing with a VR prototype, and subsequent analysis. The study focuses on critical elements like interactivity, personalization, storytelling, and multi-sensory experiences. User testing with 55 participants revealed the effectiveness of immersive design in fostering exploration, contemplation, and a sense of presence in the virtual space. This immersive design is the strategic integration of elements like interactivity, personalization, and storytelling within the VR environment. The research underscores the significance of immersive design, defined as the strategic integration of design elements to cultivate an emotional connection within a VR environment. This encompasses aspects like interactivity, personalization, and the incorporation of storytelling within the experience. Finally, the study offers practical recommendations for curators and designers to create virtual art experiences that resonate more deeply with audiences.

What is digital education? Decoding notions and encoding critical thinking, human rights and participation for fairer digital societies

This research addresses some of societal challenges in the digital age by analysing key features and contextual factors associated with digital education’s notions among academic literature. It problematises some of its shortcomings by zooming into digital education’s references to critical thinking, human rights and participation. A Systematic Literature Review was applied among peer-reviewed articles published in English since 2014. Results for discussion hinged upon the implications of dominant conceptualisations, factors enabling missing links with digital rights, and tactics steering education towards social justice in digital societies. Advancing democracies in the digital age entail comprehensive efforts oriented by human rights including technologies, regulations, research and education. Among these, education has been pointed as fundamentally affecting a stark ‘division of learning’. This gap is the axial point for the financial and controlling interests of big wealthy companies and governments. The implications of these digital divides have expanded the field of digital rights in the last decade, which was accelerated after the COVID-19 digital transformation. Nevertheless, the right to a quality education has remained broadly sidelined among digital rights, and most of the concerns from this field have been minimally included in educational agendas.

ELegalls-as-a-Service: Towards Developing Cloud-based Legal Tech System to Aid Lawyering in the Digital Age

eLegalls-as-a-Service: Towards Developing Cloud-based Legal Tech System to Aid Lawyering in the Digital Age

Analysis of virtual simulation training teaching problems of intellectual property law based on real working situations

This article aims to take AI intelligent training software and real business drills of intellectual property as the training mode to carry out intellectual property-related training in fields such as data intellectual property creation, application, management, transformation, and education, and truly achieve the educational goal of integrating science, education and industry. First, innovate the intellectual property training platform. Through AI question-and-answer led by digital human images, introduce front-line practical experts in the field of intellectual property into the virtual simulation training teaching process, build a training scene for the entire chain protection of intellectual property and real working situations, and improve the practical effect of training and cultivating intellectual property talents. Second, deepen the social service system of intellectual property. Project team members guide students and trainees to actively participate in patent navigation, patent group projects, pilot projects, intellectual property protection projects, etc., exercise and promote the continuous improvement of the social service capabilities of various intellectual property talents. At the end of the article, it is proposed that while intellectual property law teaching adapts to the development needs of the digital age, it should take the construction and teaching application of a virtual simulation experiment platform in real work situations as the core, respond to the practical needs of social practice work, and improve students' ability to adapt to society. The organic integration of AI technology, digital human technology and practical training teaching of intellectual property law has certain reference significance for the realization of the metaverse vision.

What Do News Disseminators and Audiences in the Digital Age Need Most? — Skills? Knowledge? Or Accuracy-motivated Sceptical Knowing

In the digital age, journalism encounters both challenges and opportunities. Drawing on a wide range of classic discussions and investigative experiments, this article introduces the concept of “accuracy-motivated sceptical knowing.” This concept, driven by the verification of factual accuracy, represents a professional form of sceptical knowing and is crucial for becoming a responsible media professional and an informed citizen. This article discusses the necessity of transitioning from “general scepticism” to accuracy-motivated sceptical knowing. From the perspectives of both the disseminator and the audience, this article proposes methods for accuracy-motivated sceptical knowing: the disseminator should persist and innovate, while the audience should focus on the source, evidence, openness, and education, and both disseminators and audiences should embrace the “Hurtt Six Points” — questioning, suspension, search, empathy, self-esteem, and autonomy. Finally, this article clarifies the difference between accuracy-motivated sceptical knowing and related concepts, as well as the boundaries of its application.

Entrepreneurial Mindset: Cultivating Innovation for Success in the Digital Age

The development of an entrepreneurial mindset is becoming more widely acknowledged as essential for promoting innovation and attaining success in today’s quickly changing digital environment. An overview of the vital role that an entrepreneurial mindset plays in fostering innovation in the digital age is given in this abstract. It looks at how people and organizations can adopt entrepreneurial values to take advantage of new opportunities, manage uncertainty, and adjust to technology improvements. Developing an entrepreneurial mindset is crucial for success in the fast-paced digital world as it promotes creativity. This study explores the importance of fostering an entrepreneurial mindset in the modern day as a means of promoting innovation. It looks at how people and organizations may use entrepreneurial ideas to overcome uncertainty, take advantage of opportunities, and adjust to the rapid growth of technology. This study explores the characteristics of an entrepreneurial mindset by utilizing interdisciplinary viewpoints from the fields of technology, psychology, and entrepreneurship. It also covers methods for encouraging an entrepreneurial attitude in a variety of settings, such as business, community, and education. This seeks to shed light on how an entrepreneurial attitude is essential for fostering innovation and offer strategies for individuals and companies to prosper in the rapidly changing digital environment.

Energy optimization and age of information enhancement in multi‐UAV networks using deep reinforcement learning

AbstractThis letter introduces an innovative approach for minimizing energy consumption in multi‐unmanned aerial vehicles (multi‐UAV) networks using deep reinforcement learning, with a focus on optimizing the age of information (AoI) in disaster environments. A hierarchical UAV deployment strategy that facilitates cooperative trajectory planning, ensuring timely data collection and transmission while minimizing energy consumption is proposed. By formulating the inter‐UAV network path planning problem as a Markov decision process, a deep Q‐network (DQN) strategy is applied to enable real‐time decision making that accounts for dynamic environmental changes, obstacles, and UAV battery constraints. The extensive simulation results, conducted in both rural and urban scenarios, demonstrate the effectiveness of employing a memory access approach within the DQN framework, significantly reducing energy consumption up to 33.25% in rural settings and 74.20% in urban environments compared to non‐memory approaches. By integrating AoI considerations with energy‐efficient UAV control, this work offers a robust solution for maintaining fresh data in critical applications, such as disaster response, where ground‐based communication infrastructures are compromised. The use of replay memory approach, particularly the online history approach, proves crucial in adapting to changing conditions and optimizing UAV operations for both data freshness and energy consumption.